So here you can see the statue called La France de la Renaissance, which is sometimes spelt as La France Renaissante, and in English this allegorical statue translates as The Renaissance France, and this was inaugurated on the Pont Alexandre III in the April of 1900, when the bridge was opened for the World Fair in Paris.

Now this next HD photo shows the entire 17 metre high column where the Renaissance France statue is located, and has a gilded sword matching the gilding of the statue on the top known as Pegasus held by Fame, or the Renommee du Commerce.

And this particular column and statue is located on the left bank of the River Seine in the 7th Arrondissement, and can be found on the right hand side as you are looking at the bridge towards the Grand Palais, and to give you even more of an idea, Les Invalides would be behind us.

You will find that there are numerous statues and sculptures on the Pont Alexandre III, which is referred to as the most ornate bridge in Paris, and executed by many different artists, La France de la Renaissance statue, which you can see a side view of in this image, was commissioned to Jules Coutan.

But this next photo shows a closer view with the detailing by Jules Coutan who was born in Paris in 1848 and entering the Ecole des Beaux Arts under Jules Cavelier, he became a French sculptor, winning the Prix de Rome in 1872, spending four years in Italy furthering his studies and career.

This meant that after his return from the Villa Medici Joules Felix Coutan started to receive several public commissions for statues and sculptures including for some of the well known tourist attractions in Paris like the Hotel de Ville, the Palais de Justice, the Natural History Museum at the Jardin des Plantes and of course this one of Renaissance France on the Pont Alexandre III.

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